Homemade Backpacking Gear
by Jason Klass
UL Measuring Stick
I've tried all kinds of methods to measure the water in my pot to accurately match the amount required by dehydrated-meal instructions. I've "eyeballed it", I've carried a measuring cup, I've gone by the "water mark" on the inside of the pot: I've even tried marking my spork with various methods as a multi-use item. However, drilling holes in the handle of the spork or cutting notches just become food traps, "permanent" marker wears off easily, and adding measurement dots with more durable things like paint or nail polish add God-knows-what toxicity to the water! So, I came up with this simple, cheap, light, and accurate way of measuring your cooking water. You can probably make this with what you already have lying around the house. It's not the "be all end all" but see if it works for you.
What It Is
The basic construction is nothing more than a flexible, waterproof, plastic "measuring stick" customized to the volume of your particular pot. It is easy to make, compact, light, dries quickly, and weighs next to nothing. Best of all, you can design one that measures any volume you want so there's no more guesswork.
Instructions
1. Cut several strips of printer paper (the exact number of demarcations you want on your measuring stick) about 1 cm wide and set aside.
2. Then, cut another strip that will be the readable strip on which you will eventually write the measurements. I would suggest a strip that is about 1/2 in. wide X 1" - 2" taller than your pot (the extra length will serve as a handle).
3. Now it's time to start measuring. Take your pot and fill it with the smallest amount of water you find useful (in the picture above, it's 1/4 of a cup because that's the smallest amount of water I expect to use for cooking. Yours might be different).
4. Take one of the strips of paper you set aside and dip it in the water so it touches the bottom of the pot. Do this QUICKLY otherwise the water will soak up into the paper beyond the watermark level and give you an inaccurate reading.
5. Now, take the wet strip and align it next to the strip you cut in step #2 so the bottoms are even and draw a line across the "master" strip with your pen. Label the measurement (i.e. 1/2 cup, 1 cup, etc.).
6. Empty your pot and measure the next measurement you want in your measuring cup. Repeat steps 3-5 until you have all the measurements you want on your "master" strip of paper. Hint: A useful sequence is 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1, 1 1/2, 2, 2 1/2 cups but you should come up with a scheme that best meets your cooking needs.
7. When you're done, take a 6" to 8" length of packing tape (depending on your pot height) and lay it sticky-side-up on a flat surface.
8. Then, place your "master strip" face down and smooth it over with your finger (be careful not to touch the sticky part).
9. Cut a similar length of packing tape and place it on top of what you just did so it entraps the paper and the edges are both meeting on their adhesive sides.
10. Smooth everything over with your hands, a book, or some other straight edge to get an air-tight seal.
11. Now, just cut to size. You should leave at least 1/8" of tape around the edges to keep it waterproof so the ink can't seep into your water and the water won't seep into the paper.
2. Then, cut another strip that will be the readable strip on which you will eventually write the measurements. I would suggest a strip that is about 1/2 in. wide X 1" - 2" taller than your pot (the extra length will serve as a handle).
3. Now it's time to start measuring. Take your pot and fill it with the smallest amount of water you find useful (in the picture above, it's 1/4 of a cup because that's the smallest amount of water I expect to use for cooking. Yours might be different).
4. Take one of the strips of paper you set aside and dip it in the water so it touches the bottom of the pot. Do this QUICKLY otherwise the water will soak up into the paper beyond the watermark level and give you an inaccurate reading.
5. Now, take the wet strip and align it next to the strip you cut in step #2 so the bottoms are even and draw a line across the "master" strip with your pen. Label the measurement (i.e. 1/2 cup, 1 cup, etc.).
6. Empty your pot and measure the next measurement you want in your measuring cup. Repeat steps 3-5 until you have all the measurements you want on your "master" strip of paper. Hint: A useful sequence is 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1, 1 1/2, 2, 2 1/2 cups but you should come up with a scheme that best meets your cooking needs.
7. When you're done, take a 6" to 8" length of packing tape (depending on your pot height) and lay it sticky-side-up on a flat surface.
8. Then, place your "master strip" face down and smooth it over with your finger (be careful not to touch the sticky part).
9. Cut a similar length of packing tape and place it on top of what you just did so it entraps the paper and the edges are both meeting on their adhesive sides.
10. Smooth everything over with your hands, a book, or some other straight edge to get an air-tight seal.
11. Now, just cut to size. You should leave at least 1/8" of tape around the edges to keep it waterproof so the ink can't seep into your water and the water won't seep into the paper.
Use
Place the strip in your pot and pour the water. Fill until the water reaches the desired amount. If you've poured too much, just drink out the extra until it hits the mark you want.
Variations/Tips
If you want something more rigid, you could use cardboard rather than paper or lamination material rather than packing tape; however, I like the flexibility of the paper/packing tape because it easily stows in the pot with little resistance and is super light. If you plan to make multiple measuring sticks for different pots, make sure to Mark which pot each one is for at the top of the handle so you don't forget like this:
conclusions
While I think this is indeed an effective, simple, and cheap, solution to measuring water on the trail and has some level of convenience, I'd still like to find a way to incorporate measurement into something else I already carry to make it a multi-use item. This measuring stick weighs next to nothing and is quite practical but it is also just one more "thing" to keep track of and I'm trying to simplify. So, some may be happy with it and some may not. As for me, it's back to the drawing board as always...